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MINYAK MASAK ALIF: How to Make Awesome Fried Chicken

You just can’t resist a good piece fried chicken right? And our Malaysian fried chickens are pretty awesome! Here are some tips you can follow to get you that perfect crunch.

Winner winner fried chicken dinner!

Ah… fried chicken… there is something magical about a golden crusted, crispy and juicy fried chicken that gets everyone excited. Served doused in curry sauce, dipped in mayo or drizzled with a little lemon, there are endless ways to enjoy it. But it takes mad skills to fry up some good fried chicken.

Frying is essentially cooking food in hot fat. During deep frying, food goes through the Maillard reaction which is essentially the ‘chemical reaction that occurs between amino acids and reducing sugars in the presence of heat that results in the browning of food while forming new aromas and flavours. – medium.com

In layman’s terms, hot fat makes food crispy, crunchy and golden brown. These are the key characteristics a piece of fried chicken should have. But that is not all. There are other factors that need to be taken into consideration for deep frying.

1. Use fresh chicken.
Of course you can use defrosted frozen chicken. No harm in that at all but it will not be as juicy as using fresh chicken. Plus, you can tell the difference between fresh and frozen fried chicken by looking at the bones. The bones’ of fried fresh chicken is pale and light whereas the bones of fried frozen chicken is dark brown in colour. It does look slightly unappetising but a lot of people are used to it anyway.

Fresh chicken yields juicier meat and fresher taste.

2. Always marinate the chicken.
Marinating enhances flavour down to the bone, no doubt about that. A good marinade goes a long way and remember, always use good quality or fresh ingredients. But if time of an essence, there is a cheat’s way to speed up the process which is to score chicken down to the bone. This will allow the flavours to seep in a lot faster. This theory applies to bone-in chicken too. Boneless chicken absorbs marinades faster, you’re looking at about half an hour of marinating for bite-sized pieces.

Don’t skip the marinating process. It is so worth the time and effort.

3. Let chicken sit in room temperature before frying.
Always keep chicken in the fridge and don’t ever leave it out in room temperature for long periods of time. Cool atmosphere in the fridge slows down bacterial growth, thus keeping chicken fresh. But before you fry chicken, do take it out from the fridge at least half an hour before frying to get rid of the chill. This avoids chicken from becoming too dry on the outside and not cooked through on the inside after frying. Once it has ‘warmed up’ slightly, heat from the hot oil can penetrate through the chicken down to the bone easily while frying.

These little details are what separates decent fried chicken and great fried chicken.

4. Correct oil temperature
Oil temperature can really be what separates crispy fried chicken from a soggy, greasy mess. Frying temperature is around 160˚c and up to 200˚c. The best way to check for oil temperature is to use an oil thermometer but not everyone has one. The old school way is to dip a wooden spoon handle into the oil. If small bubbles slowly starts to appear, the oil is around 160˚c-175˚c. If the wooden handle starts sizzling immediately, then the oil is around 180˚c - 200˚c. Cooks can gauge oil temperature by dropping in a little piece of food into the hot oil and watching how it bubbles. This skill takes some practice but the rule of thumb is to make sure the oil is not blowing out smoke before frying and the food you want to fry is not dripping with excess moisture.

Once you get the oil temperature and timing right, you can guarantee your fried chicken will be crispy and juicy.

5. Use Minyak Masak ALIF for that perfect deep fry
Deep frying is an art and you need to suitable oil to create that beautiful fried chicken. Minyak Masak ALIF has a high smoke point which is a very important factor in deep frying. Smoke point refers to the temperature at which oil starts to burn and smoke. When you heat oil to the point where the oil begins to produce smoke, beneficial nutrients found in oils will be destroyed and harmful free radicals are created. Thus, it is important to choose cooking oils with high smoke point like Minyak Masak Alif for deep frying.

Minyak ALIF is a great choice for deep frying.

Not only that, Minyak Masak ALIF has higher resistance towards oxidation which means the oil will have a longer shelf life and can be re-used repeatedly. Also, it has not gone through an excessive refining process so it maintains a healthy level of vitamin content. As a result, Minyak Masak ALIF is darker compared to other oil brands out in there. Don’t be fooled, darker oil doesn’t mean dirty oil, it just means healthier oil. Choose Minyak Masak ALIF for great and healthier fried chicken.

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